There's something pretty spectacular about being able to watch whales from your beach chair. Take it from me, last weekend's cloudy beach day at Santa Maria's was nothing short of amazing as the giants lunged and breached less than 100 feet from the water's edge.

There’s no debating it. Highway 1 is California’s most spectacularly scenic route. As it wends along the coast through northern Santa Cruz county, motorists (and cyclists!) are treated to some of the area’s most inspiring scenery: green fields of coastal farms, craggy sea stacks and the churning, blue Pacific. Here’s a virtual tour down the glorious coast.

Downtown Santa Cruz is loaded with great places to stop in for a delicious meal or enjoy a nice glass of wine. But there are a few notable gems that have a real knack for crafting a menu and wine list that will pair perfectly on your palate. In honor of California Wine Month, we collaborated with Santa Cruz Foodie to pick our top spots to discover diverse wine and food pairings in Downtown Santa Cruz! Here are three must taste restaurants:

The fall season is the best-kept secret among locals in Santa Cruz County. With fewer crowds, amazing hotel deals and some of the year’s best weather, the autumn months are packed full of things to do for locals and visitors. Take a look at September’s top events that will be sure to have you loving fall.

Visit Santa Cruz County is a private, non-profit corporation, serving as the official visitor marketing entity for Santa Cruz County. Visit Santa Cruz County works to enhance tourism, the visitor experience, and the area economy by positioning and promoting Santa Cruz County as a year-around visitor, conference and film destination.